


Miraculous Minifics

by adrienregreste



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-27
Updated: 2018-10-05
Packaged: 2019-07-03 04:42:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 6,311
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15811593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/adrienregreste/pseuds/adrienregreste
Summary: A collection of blathers and minifics written by me because I'm too dysfunctional to stick to chapter format





	1. Monologues

**Author's Note:**

> So this is the beginning of a work that is essentially just me rambling and such, since ML has been on my mind lately and I need to get back into the swing of writing. I hope u enjoy and I hope my writing isn't big terrible

There's something familiar about Ladybug, something subtle enough to go unnoticed.

Her eyes remind me of my mother's, soft and sad, filled with sympathy.

Her hair reminds me of the night sky I see every night as I lie in bed, staring out my window, wondering when things are going to change.

Her smile is soft like biting into a freshly baked cookie. Her laugh is musical, a one-bug concert in and of itself.

And the way she carries herself makes me think of a friend of mine. Both are strong and sure, quick on their feet and ready to conquer the evil that lies ahead.

Ladybug feels familiar to me, like a home away from home. Whoever she is underneath that mask, I love that girl.

...

Nothing about Chat Noir was familiar to me at first.

His demeanor, his posture, his attitude: all so cocky and confident, like nothing had ever gone wrong before, and like that wouldn't ever change.

Once I fell in love with Adrien, Chat's green eyes and golden hair had me suspicious, and for a fleeting moment I stared, wondering, hoping. All to no avail.

And to be fair, I see bits of Adrien in almost everything around me.

Chat Noir gracefully keeps himself a secret, a soul shrouded in skillful fighting movements and horrendous puns. For a while, I was okay with his elusiveness.

But Chat is one of my best friends now. We've been keeping Parisians safe for months.

Some strange, deep part of me wants to know more about the boy behind that black mask, but I always chase that desire away quickly. We mustn't know anything about one another.

All I'm certain of right now is that I was meant to meet Chat Noir at this point in time. He and I were destined for our roles in each other's lives from the days we were born.

After all is said and done, Chat Noir and I are a team: unstoppable.


	2. We Have It All

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A song minific; song: Pim Stones - We Have It All

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> big angst warning

"How long, Chat Noir?"

Ladybug stared icily up at Adrien from the ground, her arms bound to her torso. Her words were cold and sharp, piercing straight through his core. She was nearly trembling from anger, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. Adrien couldn't fathom how terrible he felt, how much he wanted to break down in front of her in a pool of apologies.

He couldn't do that, though. He swallowed his emotions like a cap of cough medicine and met her gaze.

"About two months," Adrien admitted, pretending he didn't see the hurt on Ladybug's face. "Gabriel told me why he was akumatizing people, why he wanted our Miraculouses so badly. It...it was important for me to help him, and..."

He let his voice trail off. He felt so small, stood there in his father's Papillon lair, in superhero form only to act as the villain.

When he gathered the strength to look back down at Ladybug, he saw that her eyes had softened a bit. She stared at the ground, her expression unreadable.

"There could be some other way, Chat," she muttered. "Fusing our Miraculouses together is dangerous. Besides," she looked back up at him, "what could Gabriel want that possibly has to do with you? How did you even found out that he was Papillon?"

Adrien spun around when he heard a mechanical whirring to see Gabriel rise up through the floor, transformed, holding his staff in front of him with both hands.

"You'll see," Adrien mumbled over his shoulder. "I'm so sorry, Ladybug."

Gabriel turned to face Ladybug and Adrien, a disgusting smirk on his lips.

"Well done, Adrien," he mused, taking slow steps towards them. "I'm surprised you led her here so easily; the Ladybug I'm familiar with is much smarter than that."

Ladybug let out a tiny gasp, her eyes wide, staring at Adrien.

"A-Adrien?"

Adrien lowered his head. "Plagg, claws in."

He detransformed into his civilian form in a lime green lightning flash. Ladybug choked out a sob behind him. He tried to ignore it, tried to keep himself numb.

Plagg wordlessly floated beside him.

"I'm surprised you hadn't deduced his identity yourself, considering you did so to mine a day or two ago," Gabriel knelt in front of her as she struggled against the rope around her arms.

"You're so fucking disgusting," she spat, swallowing sobs with every word. "You're so fucking disgusting and selfish and evil." Her voice rose to a scream. "How could you drag your own son into this? What is so important to you that you'd manipulate him into doing this for you?"

Gabriel let out a chuckle, standing back up. "All that matters now is that this is over, right?" He turned towards Adrien, holding out his hand. Adrien slipped his ring off and placed it in his father's palm.

He knelt beside Ladybug and took out her earrings, one by one, while she struggled to kick him away. She was crying. She was crying so hard.

He couldn't help but stare as she detransformed. Red and black turned into pink, white, and dark gray.

'Marinette.'

'The sweetest, most selfless, funniest, most creative girl I know. She'd never do anyone harm. Look what I'm doing...'

Adrien bit his tongue, quickly shoving the earrings into his father's hand.

Marinette's kwami stared at Adrien with a fury he'd rarely ever seen.

Her sobbing turned into silent weeping as Gabriel fused the Miraculouses together and made his wish.

"All right," Gabriel stated, "dark wings fall."

He detransformed.

"I'm going to the basement. I have a feeling that's where she'll be. Adrien, join me?"

Adrien silently shook his head.

"Suit yourself. See the girl home, maybe."

With that, he sunk into the floor and out of sight.

Adrien rushed to untie Marinette, who had gone limp with defeat.

"It's your mom, isn't it?" she whispered hoarsely. 

Adrien nodded. "There was nothing else I could do. I-I'm so sorry, I know there's no way in hell you'll ever forgive me for this...I'm so sorry."

Marinette shook her head and sat up, her kwami perching itself on her shoulder. "Fusing the Miraculouses together is dangerous. With every action we make, there's a reaction. Something bad is going to happen because of what you and Gabriel have done."

Adrien swallowed. "I know."

"Then why? There could've been another way. There's always a better way."

Adrien said nothing in response. Nothing he could say would do any good.

Marinette left after a silent eternity, taking both kwamis with her.

And Adrien went to see his mom, but never saw Marinette again; a piece of his heart traded for another.


	3. i know

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The reveal except it's sad

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is written messily on purpose, kind of a stylistic thing  
> death tw

before gabriel agreste passed, he destroyed the butterfly miraculous with a blank look on his face, if i can't bring back emilie, no one can, no one is even allowed to try

adrien was too shocked to cry when his father's final words were delivered to his room in the form of a letter,

son, i'm sorry, i'm papillon, and i destroyed the brooch. i only wanted to bring your mother back but now i'm going to join her, the brooch doesn't matter anymore, not to us

before he tore the letter into a million pieces, he brought it to master fu and the other four heroes, all detransformed, all knowing better than to talk about the shock of the Reveal at that moment

they held a service for nooroo, the kwami who suffered so many years of gabriel's abuse, who was destroyed right along with his miraculous, who didn't deserve any of it

"can we all meet at my house later today?" marinette asked, her arms crossed tightly over her chest, her face angled to the floor, and everyone silently nodded and parted ways outside of master fu's place

all except for adrien, who couldn't seem to make his legs move, standing against the wall with marinette, who seemed to have the same problem

"can i come over now?" he asked her in no particular tone, "i can't go back to that house"

marinette turned to him and nodded, fighting back obvious tears, and they left

the first thing adrien did was take a shower, a short, cold one, long enough to get clean but not long enough to think too hard

he found marinette sitting in her desk chair, having changed into different, more comfortable clothes. she hadn't even fully looked at him before she darted over to him and threw her arms around him

adrien, still too shocked for tears, held her for a while, not allowing it to sink in that marinette was his lady, no, that news needs to be saved for a happier time

his earliest memory from there was of him sitting with marinette on her little sofa, sobbing a mess into her shoulder,

"i had the chance to help bring back my mom and i can't do that now, and i also had the chance to stop papillon from terrorizing paris, and i messed up, i messed everything up"

"shh," marinette stroked his hair, "shh, chaton, there was no way you could've known, it's okay, it's not your fault"

adrien suddenly pulled away from her

"i think i would've turned on you if i'd known it was him, and what he was doing," he said between smaller sobs

marinette placed her hand atop his and looked deep into his eyes

"i know"


	4. The Same and Different

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Five ex-superheroes meet up to do some much-needed talking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is...really bad, but it's done

"Dude, do you remember the time Marinette threw you into a pond?"

In the heart of Paris, five young adults sat together in a cozy little cafe, sipping on lattes and taking small bites out of fresh pastries. After not having seen each other for a few months, it was a much-needed catch-up session.

Adrien almost lost his hot chocolate through his nose, trying to suppress a laugh. "Oh my God, I do remember that." Turning to Marinette, he added, "I don't remember for the life of me why you did that."

"Probably because she was tired of your puns," Chloe remarked playfully. 

"Hey, my puns were great, and we all know it." 

"They sure were, chaton," Marinette said with a smile after taking a swig of her tea. "That was one of our out-of-city missions. The akumatized villain ran away, and I thought throwing Chat would be the quickest way to catch them, and, well, my aim was a bit off..."

Laughing, Alya let out a snort, slamming her fist down on the table. "I remember that! When we found him soaking wet by that pond, I was so tempted to detransform so I could film it!" She paused to wipe the laughter tears from her eyes. "Oh, man. The only thing that stopped me from doing that was the knowledge that Ladybug would actually murder me on the spot."

Everyone at the table shared a laugh. Adrien ordered everyone another round of their drinks.

There was a short, yet infinite pause between the five ex-superheroes before Chloe spoke up.

"So, I'm guessing everyone knows...what happened," she spoke cautiously, quickly adding, "O-or maybe we should wait to talk about it."

All eyes moved to Adrien. Marinette took his hand into hers, squeezing reassuringly. "We can wait if you want to, chaton."

Adrien's eyes rested on his plate. "No, we can talk about it." He looked back up at his companions. "It needs to be talked about."

The group nodded collectively, and Adrien took a deep breath.

"You all know that Gabriel is in prison, and his brand has been shut down. There won't be any more akumas. I've already told Marinette everything, but...I feel like you all deserve to know exactly what happened."

"Are you sure you're good to talk about it, dude?" Nino asked, his eyes soft, the way they always were. Adrien just nodded again, swallowed, and continued.

"I found out the truth first. I heard him talking to Nathalie about...about needing to keep his identity secret, and worrying that I was Chat Noir, that he was fighting his own son. At that point, I should've left the house and called everyone, but...I barged through the door to his office, and I showed him my ring. He tried to make excuses about what I'd heard him say, but it was too late, because in my head I'd made the connection between that spell book, and that weird brooch he always wore.

"I transformed before he had the chance to and I managed to trap both him and Nathalie in the room, and called the police. While we waited for them to show up, my father had a really weird meltdown. I detransformed and told him to tell me why he was doing it, y'know, akumatizing people and ruining lives and creating PTSD, and--"

Adrien couldn't say any more before his voice was choked by the lump in his throat, hot tears running down his face. Marinette ran her hand along his arm. Nino, Alya, and Chloe all had the urge to get up and hug Adrien, but all remained still.

Marinette let Adrien cry and picked up where he left off. 

"Gabriel said he was doing it to wish his wife back. She vanished several years ago, and since them, he'd stolen the butterfly Miraculous, and spent every day creating villains. They always targeted Chat and me specifically because our Miraculouses combined can apparently grant any one wish. That was his reason."

Nino was the first to speak after a few minutes of silence. 

"Your...mom?" Chloe breathed. 

Adrien nodded, sniffling. 

Nino's eyes filled with anger. "There could've been another way. Why try to murder people and steal? How selfish can you be?"

"Fuck Gabriel," Alya muttered icily.

"I don't know," Adrien mumbled. "When the police got to my house, they took Nathalie and Gabriel, and it kind of set in that as terrible as he was, he was my only chance to see my mom. I may never see her again now. The wish to bring her back wouldn't have been worth it, but...now she's gone forever."

"She's not gone forever, chaton," Marinette reassured him. "Now that Gabriel is gone, we can issue an official search warrant, since he never thought to do that. We'll find her."

"We're all here for you, no matter what," Nino promised Adrien. 

"I've been really shitty to you for most of our lives," Chloe said in a somber tone, "So I'm gonna try to keep making up for it now. I want to do whatever I can to help."

"Same here," Alya smiled at Adrien. "Besides, you're my partner in crime, remember? We were always such schemers in high school."

Adrien chuckled softly. "Yeah, we really were. Um...thank you guys. Thank you all so much for agreeing to meet today. I actually feel a lot better after telling all of you."

They all felt better. After they left, Marinette suggested they have a movie night at her apartment for some much-needed downtime. Everyone's life went much more smoothly without the ever-presence of villains roaming the Parisian streets.

A piece of each of them was missing, though; Adrien couldn't look at a regular butterfly without having a panic attack. Marinette didn't realize how attached she was to Tikki until she gave her Miraculous back to Master Fu. Alya ended up deleting the Ladyblog, despite the good memories around it, because the bad memories gave her nightmares. Nino lost a lot of sleep writing songs to cope with everything.

Chloe sold everything she owned and moved in with Marinette in an attempt to cleanse herself of the person she used to be.

Everything was okay, eventually.

But nothing was the same.


	5. My Lotus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> All Ya Net

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a bit messy i....apologize

“Your sandwich, miss.”

Marinette perked up at the waitress, smiling and giving a quick “thank you.”

“Do you guys remember that plan Marinette had,” Rose said through a mouthful of chocolate muffin, “where we tried to set her up with Adrien, and all of us were flowers?”

Beside her, Juleka chuckled softly. “Yeah, I remember that I was Rose, and you were super confused the whole time.”

The only person who had actually understood her was Rose, since she was so accustomed to Juleka’s unbelievably quiet voice. From across the table, Marinette and Alya smiled politely at her, discreetly exchanging a confused glance with each other.

“I definitely think I should’ve been Rose,” Rose stated, having swallowed her food this time. “Juleka would be more suited to Tulip, since those are her favorite flowers anyway.”

Juleka nodded in response, and the two girls smiled softly at each other.

Under the table, Alya took Marinette’s hand into hers. “I was sort of going for color scheme when I picked everyone’s flower codename,” she remarked. “But I picked Marinette’s because I know she likes Lotus flowers the most.”

Marinette felt herself blushing. She cleared her throat and looked down at her lap, trying to hide her pink cheeks from Juleka and Rose.

“That’s so sweet!” Rose exclaimed. “I didn’t know you had such a romantic mind, Alya!”

“I can’t believe Adrien still doesn’t know you like him,” Juleka said, actually loud enough for Marinette and Alya to hear. Alya smirked and glanced at Marinette through the corner of her eye.

“Oh! Yeah, I, uh, haven’t told him yet,” Marinette stammered and stumbled over her words, now blushing even harder. “I might never even tell him! I mean, what’s the point, he probably likes someone else anyway!”

Rose and Juleka watched Marinette ramble on and on for a few good minutes before Alya rolled her eyes, lifting her and Marinette’s clasped hands above the table.

Rose and Juleka gasped in sync, their eyes going wide.

“No way! How long has this been going on?” Rose asked excitedly.

“Ah…a few weeks,” Marinette admitted, feeling herself cool down a little bit. “I was nervous to tell anyone, because everyone still thinks I like Adrien, and, yeah…”

“Marinette isn’t used to the whole dating thing yet,” Alya said affectionately. “I think it’s adorable.”

And, Marinette was blushing again. 

“Oh my gosh, they totally remind me of us when we started dating!” Rose exclaimed to Juleka. 

“Surprisingly, it was you who was shy and awkward,” Juleka replied playfully.

“Wanna see her explode? Guess what her pet name is.” Alya smiled cheekily at Marinette.

“Alya,” Marinette whined, despite grinning like an idiot. “C’mon, that’s personal.”

“I need to know now,” Rose giggled, leaning forward a little.

“I call her my lotus.”

While Rose and Juleka babbled about how adorable the pet name was, Marinette snuck a glance at Alya beside her. She never imagined that she’d get over Adrien, even six months ago it seemed like it was impossible, but here she was now.

Happier than ever, side by side with the person she was meant to be with all along.


	6. Needle and Thread

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chlonette :-)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was shorter than i intended, but i hope u enjoy anyway

Chloe hesitated before opening the doors to the bakery, pondering at what she was about to do. She didn’t want to ask Marinette for help, but something told her that if Jagged Stone and Laura Nightingale trusted her designing, she couldn’t be that bad.

She swallowed her pride and pulled the door open, a little jingle coming from the a bell on the top. The irresistible aroma of fresh pastries and warm cookies filled her nose, sweetening her mood up a little bit. 'This is gonna go just fine, just endure it for a little bit, Bourgeois.'

Chloe made her way to Marinette’s mom, who was stood sorting bills at the cash register. She placed her hands behind her back, conjuring up fake politeness.

“Mrs. Cheng? I’m Chloe Bourgeois, a great friend of Marinette’s. I need to see her, do you know where she is?”

Mrs. Cheng gave Chloe a baffled, if a bit offended, expression, which faded into an unsure smile after a moment. “Uh, sure thing, Chloe. Marinette’s upstairs, in her room.” 

Chloe nodded and walked past, letting out a small breath of relief. 'Why the hell am I so anxious? I can’t have anxiety, it’ll turn my hair grey at a young age! Pull yourself together!'

She didn’t realize she had physically smacked her forehead until she saw Marinette standing at the bottom of the staircase, holding a full hamper in her arms, staring at Chloe with an odd mixture of fear and rage in here eyes.

Chloe quickly pulled both hands down at her sides. 

“C-Chloe?” Marinette exclaimed. “What…what on earth are you doing here?”

Chloe rolled her eyes and placed her hands on her hips. “I don’t exactly want to be here either, Dupain-Cheng. I need your help.”

Marinette looked genuinely confused. “You need…my help? With what? Did you forget how to dress yourself?”

Chloe’s skin pricked with irritation. “No, genius, I need you to make me an outfit for the annual fashion show at Daddy’s hotel. And, yes, I can pay you.”

“So, you technically do need help dressing yourself, then?” Marinette replied cheekily, grinning at Chloe.

“Just go take care of your damn laundry and meet me in your room, jeez.” Chloe pushed past Marinette and made her way up the staircase. 

“Whatever you say, your highness,” Marinette called up to her. Chloe chose to ignore her that time.

After a couple of flights of stairs, Chloe seated herself on Marinette’s sofa, taking in her surroundings.

“God, Marinette must be stuck in middle school with all this pink…”

If she was being honest with herself, Marinette had a really cute room. It was the type of room Chloe had secretly always wanted, a smaller, more cozy alternative to her massive bedroom at the hotel. It looked like no one ever set foot in it. Marinette’s was a little messy, more lived-in.

Chloe jumped when she heard the door opening from below. Marinette emerged into the room and sat next to Chloe, still managing to keep her distance.

“I don’t have a disease, Dupain-Cheng,” Chloe muttered. “Besides,” she added, pulling out her phone, “I need to show you what I have in mind.”

Marinette wordlessly shifted closer to Chloe, both hovering over the screen of her cell phone. For a reason unknown to her, she felt a nervous twinge in her gut. 

After examining the design for a moment Marinette nodded. “I think I can do that. Thank God I bought fabric yesterday.”

“Good. Now, hurry up.”

Marinette glared at her as she stood. She moved over to her desk, and started sorting through her materials, occasionally pulling something out and setting it beside her. After a minute, she turned around to face Chloe again.

“Why are you still here? It’s gonna take me a day or two to finish this for you.”

“Oh.” Chloe quickly stood and folded her arms. “I, uh, I knew that. I was just resting my legs before I had to walk down all those stairs again.”

Marinette turned back towards her supplies. “I’ll text you when it’s done.”

With that, Chloe left, still confused about the way she was feeling. She had always hated Marinette, but she’d never really asked herself why until today. Sure, Marinette had an annoying crush on Adrien and an even more annoying tendency to rat Chloe and Sabrina out, but…was that it?

“It sounds like you’ve got a little crush,” her butler told her that evening after listening to her spill her feelings to him.

“Are you crazy?” She retorted, mouth full of chocolate. “I’d rather die. Besides, my heart belongs to Adrien, everyone knows that!”

That wasn’t true, though. Chloe had long accepted her feelings for Ladybug, knowing it was something that would likely never happen. Adrien was more or less her cover-up, for now. She knew very well that his affections were not towards her.

Maybe she felt weird because Marinette had the same hairstyle as Ladybug. Maybe it was Marinette’s dumb jokes, or the way her face scrunched up when she was focusing on the design Chloe showed her. Maybe it was just being around her outside of school, outside of pranks or malicious intent. 

'I guess I’ll figure it out when I go visit her tomorrow,' Chloe thought as she began to fall asleep that night.


	7. Soft Midnights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marichat stuffs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> despite not really shipping Marichat romantically, i really like how this minific turned out !! i hope you enjoy reading it as much as i enjoyed writing it

The first time Chat Noir tapped on Marinette’s bedroom window, he was looking for solace from the heartbreak of Ladybug’s rejection. Guilt pricked at her stomach when she opened the window to let him in, wondering why he chose her to vent to, over anyone else in Paris. He must be someone she knew, someone she saw frequently in her civilian life, but…who?

Who did she know who trusted her like that?

“It hurts,” he’d admitted after sitting quietly on her bedroom floor for a while. “She is so much more to me than just a pretty face behind a mask, y’know? She’s wonderful, she’s strong…”

Marinette, sitting beside him, lightly touched his shoulder.

“And, yeah, it hurts,” Chat Noir continued. “But, well, when she told me that she cared about me, I sort of realized it for the first time. I’d assumed that I was just her superhero partner, but she actually does care.”

'Of course I care about you, dumbass,' Marinette thought as she listened to him talk. 

From there, he stopped by late at night a few more times, claiming that he just wanted to get out of the house. Marinette let him in, brought him some leftover pastries from downstairs, and they talked for a while. His visits became a constant over the months. 

One night, Marinette sleepily told Chat Noir about Adrien. “That stupid, amazing, moron boy,” she’d called him, which made Chat Noir laugh. 

“No, I’m serious,” Marinette mumbled, rolling over to face him. They’d made a pallette on the floor from the pillows and blankets on Marinette’s bed. “He’s so pretty but he makes me want to punch things.”

Still chuckling, he asked her, “Who is it?”

“Promise you won’t laugh at me, or think I’m dumb.”

“Promise.”

“It’s Adrien Agreste. The model, y’know?” Marinette squeaked, already embarrassed. “I know, how shallow of me to have a crush on a model, right?”

Chat Noir was quiet for a moment. “Why would I think you’re dumb for that?”

“I dunno,” Marinette sighed, sitting up. “A lot of people just like him because he’s cute, but in the few times I’ve managed to talk to him, I’ve seen that he’s nice, too.”

Another moment of quiet. 

“I’ve heard that Adrien is a huge weeb,” Chat Noir said suddenly, a huge smile on his face. “Like, he watches a lot of anime and he plays Overwatch.”

Marinette hit Chat Noir in the face with a pillow, snickering. “I do that too, dummy. What, are you friends with him?”

“You could say that,” Chat Noir replied cheekily.

When they didn’t hang out at Marinette’s, Chat Noir would sometimes take her to the Eiffel Tower, and they’d sit quietly together, gazing out at the moonlit city. Marinette slowly ruined her sleep schedule just so she could spend more time with him, despite seeing him on patrol a few times a week. 

Marinette didn’t remember when she realized she’d fallen in love with him. It could’ve been any time she glanced at him while he was mid-laugh, or staring out the window at the stars, or dozing on her sofa, cuddling with a pillow. Marinette held herself back from telling Chat Noir this, especially when she was transformed, because it wouldn’t be fair. How could she turn around and tell him she did love him now, months after his confession to her?

'So I get over Adrien just to throw myself into this mess, huh?'

Chat Noir was a little early one night; the sun was still out, and Marinette was sitting on the floor, trying to concentrate on her homework. When she saw him sitting outside at the window, she lazily tugged her earbuds out and stood up to let him in.

“You’re early, chato–er, Chat,” Marinette stammered at him. 

“Well, I was kinda thinking about something, and…had to come over ASAP,” Chat Noir said, stretching and sitting cross-legged on the floor in a single fluid, catlike motion. Marinette smiled and sat down beside him, her back against her sofa.

“What’s up?” Marinette asked, expecting him to crack some sort of joke.

“Well, uh…wow, I don’t know how to even start this, uh…” Chat Noir stuttered before trailing off.

“Jeez, you sound like me,” Marinette joked, moving closer to him and putting an arm around his shoulder. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, everything’s fine,” he reassured her. “I just have a, uh, problem, in that I think I have some…feelings.”

After a pregnant moment, he added: “…for you.”

Marinette’s face immediately turned beet red and she stared at him, her eyes wide. She was suddenly hyper-aware that she was touching him. “You what now?”

Chat Noir turned around to face Marinette. “Well, I think I have for a while, but I didn’t say anything because of your thing for Adrien, and I…didn’t wanna ruin our friendship, y’know?”

Marinette hesitantly placed her hand on his where he was resting it beside him. “I know. I’ve, um, been holding back for the same reason.”

“What?” Chat exclaimed. “What about Adrien?”

“I don’t know. I’m not friends with him on the same level that I am with you, and my feelings kinda shifted after we spent a lot of time together, and, yeah.” Marinette felt her heart beating miles in her chest.

Chat Noir glanced sadly down at the ground. “I’d, uh, ask you out, but you don’t know who I really am.”

'You don’t know who I really am, either,' Marinette thought. 

She laced her fingers between his. “That’s okay, Chat. I’ll be waiting for you once Papillon is gone and you can show me who you really are.”

'I’ll literally be right by your side.'

Chat Noir perked up, blushing slightly. “Really? That could take a long time, even with the other heroes Ladybug is bringing in, and–”

“Yes, really,” Marinette interrupted. “No matter how long it takes.”

The two idiots gazed at each other for a while, slowly leaning closer until their lips met in the softest, sweetest kiss in the universe. 

Hiding her love for him as Ladybug was going to be tough, but he would understand when she was able to explain everything.

'He’s going to be so happy when he finds out who I am.'


	8. Locked Swords - Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adrigami stuffs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i have zero confidence in this, but if i keep nitpicking, i'll never get it done, so here it is! split into two parts to make it easier for me

Adrien felt an immediate connection to the red-clad fencer the second he laid eyes on them. They strode into the D’Argencourt Academy like they owned it, sabre in hand, fencing helmet on, a completely androgynous mystery of a person. It was basically love at first sight, a feeling Adrien had had for only one person before. 

 

She wasn’t interested, though, and Adrien more than respected that.

They’d demanded to have a fencing match with the best the academy had to offer. Everyone around Adrien stepped back, and he lifted his helmet up, expecting the red fencer to do the same. They didn’t. They just approached him, bowed respectfully, and waited for M. D’Argencourt to give them the starting signal.

“Allez!”

And they shot at him like a flash of lightning, only catching him off guard for a split second before he caught up to speed. Their movements were fluid, precise, and trained, and Adrien was certain they had him cornered right up until Marinette claimed she saw him strike them first.

“Are you sure?” He’d asked her, knowing it was her very first day, and it was likely impossible to tell.

“Well...I don’t know, everything was going so fast, but it looked like you hit first,” Marinette replied shyly. Adrien could tell she truly wasn’t sure, but her word was good enough for M. D’Argencourt. 

On their way out, the red fencer thrust their sabre into the ground with a frustrated grunt. Adrien hesitantly picked it up, a little enchanted to be holding the sabre of such a skilled fencer, and followed them outside.

“Wait, your sabre!” He called after them. They turned to face him, looking him over for a moment, before removing their fencing helmet and thrusting it into their bag. 

They...she was beautiful, and suddenly Adrien had no idea what to do with his hands except fidget with the sabre. Up close, he could tell her gear was tailored precisely to the dimensions of her body, designed to be breathable and easy to maneuver in. Adrien felt like an idiot in his clunky gear compared to the red fencer in hers. There was a ring on her right hand displaying a symbol that somehow looked familiar to him. Who was she? How had Adrien never heard of her before?

“Keep it,” the red fencer told him briskly. “You won, you keep the sabre.”

“Let’s have a decisive match,” Adrien blurted out, his mouth working more quickly than his brain. “We can see who really wins this time. Please?”

The red fencer considered this, before lowering and shaking her head. “You won,” she repeated, “and there’s no such thing as a second chance in my family. I appreciate your offer.”

They maintained eye contact for another moment as Adrien fumbled around in his brain for something to say. A silver car with heavily tinted windows pulled up behind the red fencer, and she turned to walk towards it without another word. She opened the door, climbed in, and then she was gone.

Little to Adrien’s surprise, she was akumatized no more than five minutes later into the metallic-silver Riposte. Ladybug showed up, and after Adrien was successfully able to transform, they managed to defeat her and cleanse the akuma, as is the routine. 

In the midst of the fighting, Adrien noticed with relief that something was different about seeing Ladybug this time. He felt a million pounds lighter. 'Maybe I'm moving on.'

After the ordeal, Adrien and the red fencer apologized to each other outside of the Louvre. He hadn’t noticed how tense she was until he watched her let her shoulders relax. She smiled up at him.

“Sorry I tried to kill you,” she said. “You’re a very skilled fencer, the best I’ve ever encountered.”

“What--really?” Adrien asked her, heat moving to his cheeks. “I...was kinda in shock the whole time we were fencing each other.”

When Kagami chuckled in response, Adrien added, “No, for real, you deserve to be in the D’Argencourt Academy way more than I do.”

“Oh, don’t say that,” the red fencer said, gently and reassuringly touching Adrien’s arm. “You’re not giving yourself enough credit.”

“I could say the same about you,” Adrien remarked. 

“Touché. Pun intended.”

The two stood quietly for a short while when the red fencer spoke again. 

“I don’t think I ever properly introduced myself.” She turned towards Adrien and bowing respectfully. “My name is Kagami Tsurugi.”

“I’m Adrien Agr--ah, Adrien.” He’d considered telling her his last name, but thought better of it. 'Not everybody needs to know who my father is.'

Adrien paused. “Hold on...Tsurugi, like the family of crazy skilled fencers?” 'I knew that symbol on her ring looked familiar. No wonder she absolutely kicked my ass.'

Kagami nodded. “That’s why I need to get into the Academy so badly.” Her demeanor suddenly changed, her head lowered and her eyes to the ground. “My mother is going to be so upset with me when I get home.”

Adrien was familiar with that feeling. Trying to cheer her up, he said, “Hey, there are still tryouts tomorrow. Still up for a decisive match?”

Kagami grinned at him. “Yeah, sure. Thank you.”

The Gorilla’s car pulled up along the curb just as Kagami finished her sentence. Adrien felt his heart sink a little bit, wanting to stay and keep talking with his new friend. In the ten minutes they’d spent talking, he already felt like she knew him better than anyone else. He slung his bag over his shoulder, said goodbye, and made his way towards the car.

He stopped after a few steps. Kneeling down, he fished through his bag for a pen and a piece of paper. After scribbling down his phone number, Adrien walked back to Kagami.  
“So, this is weird, because we’ve known each other for a whole three hours, but…” he trailed off and shyly handed her the sheet of paper.

It could’ve just been his imagination, but he could’ve sworn he saw her blush a little bit. 

“I’ll text you later so you have mine, too,” Kagami promised him. 

“See you later, Kagami,” Adrien told her over his shoulder, turning back towards the car. On the way back to the mansion, his phone chimed in his lap.


	9. Heroes' Day

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> an excessively dramatic and very short drabble about the events of Catalyst and Mayura

It looked like a painting. The silhouettes of five young heroes stood atop a building, a cloudy sky hiding a blazing orange and pink sunset. The whole scene made the city look like it was on fire.  
The warm evening winds carried with them a tension so thick, you’d swear you heard a cello bellowing a constant, single low note. The chests of the heroes were gripped with adrenaline as they watched old akuma victims filling the streets below them. Each hero somehow knew that this fight was more than a coincidence, more than just a bunch of past villainized people coming back for a second chance at victory. Somehow, they all felt that this fight could end everything.   
It could end Papillon, victimized civilians, general evil looming over Paris.  
Or, alternatively, this fight could end the heroes. It could cost them their Miraculouses. It could cost them their chance to avenge the fallen Guardians from so long ago. If things got bad enough, maybe even their lives.  
And so, there stood five superheroes: turtle, fox, ladybug, bee, and cat.  
This was ending tonight, one way or another.


End file.
